Energy Law and Policy

The electric utility industry is changing. Low-cost distributed generation and the application of information technology have begun to decentralize how electricity is generated and consumed. Utilities, generators, regulators and consumers may each have new roles to play in a potentially more dynamic, information-based and decentralized electric industry. These changes pose a number of challenges for the legal and regulatory frameworks that govern the electricity system, many of which were developed at a time when the dividing line between various actors roles and responsibilities were more clear cut.

The Guarini Center’s work on innovation in electricity law and policy focuses on two core issues:

Jurisdictional Boundaries: An analysis of the increasingly complicated division between state and federal jurisdiction over electricity policy and regulation.

New Regulatory Models: An assessment of the opportunities and challenges to change in the overall process of utility rate regulation. This work is based on analysis of alternative regulatory models deployed in U.S. states and in select international markets, and focuses on both the process of regulation and its substantive policy goals.